Home priority for Gen Y

GENERATION Y is spending less and saving more, despite the stereotypes that say otherwise, according to a southern Gold Coast academic.

Southern Cross University Business School research assistant Melanie Thomas said Gen Yers overwhelmingly made owning a home a priority over shopping and eating out.

Ms Thomas said 95% of Generation Y wanted to buy their own home before their 30th birthday.

“As a group they have a higher income and their life goal of owning a house has kicked in,” she said.

“They have decided to start spending a lot less money on luxury items and things that are no longer such a priority such as clothing and travel and put some money in the bank to gain their dream of owning a house.”

But unlike other generations, she said, Gen Y were not too concerned about the financial stability of owning a home.

“It’s more about creating identity, having somewhere to call a home to create and define their personalities,” she said.

One person who has tightened his belt is 26-year-old Greg Pilling of Fingal.

This time last year he was spending money on non-essentials.

“(I was) going out with mates and stuff like that drinking and doing the regular stuff you do on weekends surf trips and stuff like that,” Mr Pilling said.

“I do like clothes shopping and I’d probably go out once a month and spend a hundred bucks here and there and not even think twice.”

Rather than a saving for house, it was a change in jobs that caused him to spend less.

“Before you’d have a big night and not really worry about it,” he said.

“There’s always the thought in the back of your mind, ‘oh how am I going to pay that bill next week’.

“I might buy beers every now and then ... that’s about it,” he said. “(I’m) just keeping it simple.”